How to work during periods of instability, reduce team anxiety and keep selling

Partner material from Eduard Sayfutdinov — expert in building systematic sales and team management.

Over 12 years of entrepreneurial experience, 20+ sales departments built, Ex CCO Realiste ai (2023-2024): sold 800 units with a team of 20 people over 2 years in the UAE market.

The market always moves in waves — and that's normal

The real estate market has always developed cyclically. After summer comes winter, after winter — summer again. The reasons for the waves vary: geopolitics, restrictions, currency rates, investor sentiment. But the waves themselves have always been, are, and will always be.

That's why the winner is not the one who tries to predict the market, but the one who uses the low season to prepare for the high one.

If right now you're experiencing a sales dip, your team is nervous, and the owner is worried — it's important to understand: this is not the end. Yes, it may not be the best time right now, but after winter there will always be summer. And right now is the best time to build a system. A system gives you two things: a more stable result in current conditions and readiness for growth when the market goes up. While others are putting out fires, you'll already be leaders.

The main principle: panic is cured not by motivation, but by clarity

Panic doesn't go away from inspiring speeches. It goes away from clarity, rhythm, discipline, and clear rules of the game.

The first thing to do is separate the controllable from the uncontrollable.

The external environment, news, geopolitics, market behavior — you don't control these. But you fully control what happens inside the company:

• speed of response to a lead
• number of quality contacts
• conversion between funnel stages
• number of meetings and calls
• offers issued
• follow-up touches
• database management

When the team is stressed, the planning horizon narrows. Don't set goals for three or six months ahead — speak to the team in the language of short iterations: one week or two at most. Your job is to shift the focus from anxiety about the future to specific actions that can be taken here and now. This creates a sense of control and reduces the overall level of tension.

Transparency as a management tool

In times of instability, people need one simple resource — a piece of stability. And the strongest support you can give your team is transparency.

I recommend that owners and managers communicate as openly as possible with the team during these periods: show what's happening with leads every day, what the conversions are, what's changing right now, what's being tested, and what the first results are.

People start to panic when they don't understand the picture and begin to fill in the blanks. Especially when they see that leads have decreased and clients have become more difficult.

Important nuance: communication should not turn into therapy. Speak through facts and numbers — you can't argue with those. "Today there were this many leads — that's just a fact. Yesterday there were a bit more, response speed was this, lead-to-call conversion was that, we dipped here, we're changing this, tomorrow we'll check the effect."

Don't discuss why the market is bad — that's not in your power. Discuss what you're improving in yourself and in your processes right now. That's the only way those who win in the low season think.

Discipline: three short meetings a day

Especially during a crisis period, I recommend implementing three short management checkpoints throughout the day.

Morning (10–15 minutes): what's happening, main tasks for the day, one key priority, who's doing what, what absolutely must happen today.

Midday (quick fact check — can be done in a chat): how many leads were taken, how many contacts were made, how many calls and meetings were scheduled, who had wins and news.

Evening (end-of-day summary): what worked, what got in the way, focus on 1–2 main tasks for tomorrow.

This rhythm does two things: it restores a sense of control and removes emotional noise. Emotions begin to follow the system, not the other way around.

During stressful periods, don't overload the team with big plans. One week — two at most. Short iterations provide manageability and reduce anxiety.

How to speak to your team honestly

When employees join a company — especially if it's not Coca-Cola or an obvious market leader — they come not so much for the brand, but for the specific team and the specific manager.

That's why it's important to step in front of the team and calmly tell the truth: "Guys, I'm worried too — that's normal, we're all human. What's happening outside is not in our power. But what we do every day is in our power. Let's focus on actions."

This is not weakness. It's a mature, honest position that gives the team real support. People see that the leader isn't pretending everything is perfect, isn't hiding, holds the frame and knows what to do. This is exactly what's needed in unstable times.

How to sell in times of instability

Sales are a fairly flexible thing — you can sell always and everywhere, it's just a matter of adjusting your approach depending on the situation. In calm times, people buy the property. In unstable times — they buy a sense of security.

This changes everything. You can't sell through pressure. You can't sell a dream like "hurry up, it'll be too late later" — that will only scare off an anxious client. You need to sell through clarity and structure.

Three phrases that always work:

• "Let me ask a few questions to understand your goals and risks — and I'll suggest the safest scenario."
• "I'm not rushing you. Look, we're acting according to a plan: timeline, budget, legal part, payment method — and we'll go through the possible risks."
• "Let me suggest three scenarios: conservative, balanced, and more aggressive — choose whichever feels closest to you."

When a client gets several options and control, they calm down and start thinking like an investor, not like a person in anxiety.

Objection handling technique: making the point through questions

In stressful situations, brokers often start pressuring the client or arguing with them. This is the main mistake: an argument always increases resistance.

The right technique is to understand the client's fear and give them facts not directly, but through a question.

Example: a client says "Everything is dangerous in Dubai, I'm not buying anything there." If you respond "No, everything is fine" — you'll get conflict and distrust. It's much more powerful to calmly ask: "Could you tell me, do you know how many people were actually affected in Dubai?" Or: "Are you aware of how the Dubai government responds in such situations — what they do with tourists, with the airport?" And then talk about specific measures: how tourists were relocated, how the airport resumed operations on the third day. That is, the country has a well-organized risk management system, it responds to events, and necessary measures are taken in a timely manner.

This technique works with any fear. A client says "They'll close accounts there" — ask: "Do you know how many accounts were closed in Russia versus how many in Dubai? Let's compare."

Don't argue, don't try to convince. Ask questions, translate emotions into specifics, facts, and an action plan. The conclusion should form in the client's mind through their own thoughts and their own words — this is the most powerful sales technique in times of anxiety.

Clear rules within the team

When employees don't have clear evaluation rules or the rules are too general — for example, just the number of deals — people start getting defensive, looking for someone to blame, and arguing. In times of instability, this becomes especially acute.

What needs to be done:

• Introduce clear KPIs for the week and for the day.
• Establish quality standards at each funnel stage.
• Implement daily monitoring by numbers.

Key principle: don't punish for a market dip or for lack of results. Punish for lack of effort and for breaking procedures. Even better — don't punish the weak, but publicly praise those who follow the system. The rest will catch up on their own.

Another principle that should become an iron rule: if it's not recorded in the CRM — it didn't happen. A call — in the phone system, a Zoom meeting — with a recording. In a crisis, memory starts to fail. The CRM is facts you can rely on. Convenient tools for recording and transcribing meetings include tldv and Fathom, both of which automatically sync with Zoom.

Flexibility: what to change fast and what to leave alone

Strategy should be flexible — but not chaotic. These are fundamentally different things.

Can and should be changed quickly:

• scripts and positioning for the anxious client
• offers and packages
• speed of response to a lead
• lead distribution methodology
• rules for database management and follow-up touches
• content and arguments about market safety

Should not be changed every week:

• funnel stages
• CRM workflow rules
• daily rhythms
• quality standards

If you're constantly reassembling the system — the team loses its footing, and anxiety comes back.

Real case: how to restore control in two weeks

I recently worked with an agency where, during a sales dip, managers started blaming marketing, some began overpromising to clients, and others froze and stopped making calls.

We didn't change all the marketing. We did three things:

• Established funnel stages and quality standards — showed the team what needs to be done at each stage.
• Introduced daily meetings with results based on numbers and facts.
• Rebuilt the first contact script for clarity and safety — removed pressure, added questions so brokers could better understand the client and build rapport.

After one week, there was less chaos. After two — control over conversions was restored.

The market can be stormy. But results are held by the system.

Practical checklist: what to do right now

• Establish funnel stages and quality standards at each stage
• Introduce daily meetings: morning + midday fact check + evening summary
• Show the team key metrics and internal changes every day
• Update the first contact script for safety and clarity
• Implement the rule: not in the CRM — didn't happen
• Once a week, review calls and Zoom meetings with the team — no judgment, only growth
• Switch to short planning iterations: one week, two at most

This way you'll simultaneously reduce the tension in the team, maintain sales during the "winter" period, and prepare for market growth — so that when the upturn comes, you don't just earn more, but become stronger than competitors. Because you'll already have a manageable system delivering consistent results.

If you want to learn about the advertising landscape in the real estate market in your region and build a comprehensive client acquisition strategy — book a free consultation with us.